Improvement in soda-fountains



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LettersPatent No. 104,881, dated June 2S, 1870.

IMPROVEMENT IN YSODA-1'"TJ'II'TitIliI'S.

The Schedule referred to in theseLet-ters Patent and making part of the same To all to whom these presents shall come:

Be it known that I, ALvrN Davis PUFFER, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massa chusetts, have made an invention of certain Improve ments in the Manufacture of Soda-Fountains or other analogous articles; and do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof', due reference being had to the accompanying drawing making part of this specification, and in which-- Figure l is a perspective elevation;

Figure 2, an under-side view; and

Figure 3, a vertical section of the main body of a soda-fountain embodying my improvements.

The improvements I am about to describe have reference to soda-fountains, or other devices or structures of a like character, composed of marble or stone, the primary object in view in originating such improvements being to increase the strength of such objects, which at present are toa great extent of a fragile nature, and subject to fracture and injury in Other objects incidentto the invention will be duly explained.

rlhe soda-fountain, or a portion thereof, employed, in this instance, to exhibit this invention, i| an upright structure, polygonal in horizontal see ion, and, composed of flat slabs of marble; and

Such invention consists- First, in providing a continuous metallic strap or plate, as hereinafter explained, applied to the inner faces of the conjoined slabs, which binds them rmly and inseparably together, whether there be confined with such strap or not an outlying molding or finish, which overlaps the outer face of eachv slab, and connected with the strip by metallic bolts passing through the slabs; and

Secondly, these improvements consist, in cases where the outer molding above mentioned is omitted, in con- `fining the finish or bead, which covers the outer joints or corners of the slabs, to the inner metallic strip, by a metallic joint or connection, the obj ect of which is to prevent misplacemcnt of such bea-d, which now often ensues by reason of its lower end clinging to the bench or object upon which the fountain rests, in the attempt to slide such fountain along the same in changing its position or moving it, the said bead, under the present construction, owing to the extreme weight of the structure, frequently being detached and torn from -its place.

A third feature of my invention will be found to vconsist in a peculiar mode of applying a molding or cornice to the top or bottom, or both top or bottom of the struct-ure, in such manner that the abutting-ends of such molding, or the joint between them, are concealed and the strength of the structure very much increased.

In the drawing accompanying this specification, and which illustrates my invention, a soda-fountain, without its cap or roof', isv represented at A as an upright structure, hexagonal in'horizontal section, and composed of slabs a a, dac., of mar-ble, the edges of which are mitered together in such manner as to create a reasonably tight joint, and are then smeared and covered with plaster of Paris upon the inside of the strueture.A

The extreme upper or lower part of the inner faces of the conjoined slabs c a., or both, are united by a metallic strap or plate, b, such strap being originally produced in sections, which are screwed securely to the slabs by screws or bolts c c, &c., which pass through the latter and into the outlying molding, if one bc eniployed, or into buttons or plates adopted as substitutes for such molding.

The dii'erent sections of the metallic strap are united by soldering to them short pieces of metal. rlhe con traction of the continuous strap thus produced, which ensues from its expansion caused by the soldering of the different joints togethenhas the effect of binding the slabs very firmly and solidly together, and permits of transportation of the structure with perfect safety.

The outlying molding d, whether the cornice or base of the structure is formed in sections e e, which meet at the center of each slab, the joint between them being overlapped or covered by a metallic escutcheon or other ornament f, a screw, q, passing through the inner strap b and into the escutcbeon, serving to bind the ends ofthe molding securely to the slab, the hole about the screw being further supplied with plaster of Paris to produce a solid, unyielding joint.

The escuteheon f serves the triplefunction of confining the ends of the molding in place, of concealing the joint which exists between their abutting ends, which would otherwise be disagreeabl y prominent, and of adding to the ornamental appearance of the structure.

The corner-bead, plate, or finish which overlaps the abutting edges of the slabs c a, 85e., is shown individually, at r/ in the drawing, as confined in place by a bolt, which extends from it through the slab, and upon which is screwed a nuton the inside of the structure, this being the mode heretofore adopted for securing the corner finish in place.

To prevent tearing away of this corner-finish, which now frequently occurs Ain instances when the lower molding is omitted, I cnt from the marble, between the lower abutting edges-of each slab, a shallow channel, h, while within this channel I deposit solder` or other fusible'inetal, which unites the bead l/ Securely to the inner "metallic strap b, before mentioned, and produces a. metallic union ofthe two, which effectnally insures the bead from inisplaccment under any circumstances.

The above-described improvements, although appearing, peilmps, to the uninitiated, trifling, are, nevertheless, points of great import-ance in the manufac- Y ture of soda-fountains, and an `extensive: manufacture of such articles has demonstrated the value of these improvements.

Claims.

I elaiinv K 1. The combination, with the inner laces of the conjoined slabs of apolygonal stone structure, ofan endless or continuous metallic strap, b, produced and ap-` 

